Patricia Cameron

Rescue

by Patricia Cameron | Jun 23, 2023 | Faith, Hope, Redeemed

John 8: 1-11 tells a story of a woman caught in adultery. The scribes and the Pharisees brought her to Jesus to test Him. Thrown into the sand, she awaited the sting of the stones that would crush her and seal her fate.

She was guilty. She knew it. Her accusers knew it. She had been caught in the act and there was no way out.

Did panic set in? Or was she resigned to her punishment of death? Were her eyes locked on Jesus? Or cast down to the ground?

But then Jesus’ hand reached down and wrote in the sand. One by one, her accusers left.

No stone was cast her way.

Jesus had her back. He did not condemn her; He rescued her. His words only directed her to go and sin no more.

One Pair of Hands

I heard a new song last week. It is an old song, but new to me. Written and recorded by Carroll Roberson in 1971, One Pair of Hands was also sung by Elvis Presley.

The song encourages us to put our faith in Jesus. Its lyrics tell us God formed creation with one pair of hands. Jesus healed people from sickness, raised people from the dead and fed thousands with one pair of hands.

Like the adulterous woman, we have all sinned. Maybe it’s obvious to those around us. Maybe not. Maybe it’s simply a lack of faith.

Consider Peter’s short stint of walking on water.

Strong and confident, bold was his middle name. But when he began to sink, his confidence faltered and fear gripped him. Once locked on Jesus, his eyes shifted to the wind around him. He began to feel the weight of the wet substance as it soaked into his cloak.

However, in the next moment, a hand reached down and rescued Peter from the deep, dark water.

The Bible speaks of many more rescues by Jesus.

One pair of hands cleansed a leper.
One pair of hands broke a loaf of bread, placing the pieces in baskets to nourish the crowd.
One pair of hands took saliva and dirt, placing mud over the eyes of a man born blind. And gave him sight.
One pair of hands held babies and children.
One pair of hands raised a girl to life.
One pair of hands washed the feet of his closest friends, even his betrayer.
One pair of hands were extended and nailed to a cross. Arms stretched in agony secured our hope and sealed our fate . . . if we only believe and receive.

The Price Paid

Have you been desperate for a rescue? Do you need forgiveness today? Restoration? Salvation?

Jesus has already paid the price. His hands have already done the deed, reaching out to us.

Let the goodness and love of our Lord Jesus Christ wash over you today.

Seek Him and put your faith in the one pair of hands.

“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are Mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.” Isaiah 43:1-2

Answering the Call

by Patricia Cameron | May 26, 2023 | Encouragement, God, Joy

We got reacquainted while seated by each other at a funeral. I shared some things from my heart. She committed to pray for me. And she has done just that.

At random times, I receive a text with scripture and words of encouragement. Each time, they meet a specific and timely need in my life.

Even while in my quiet time early this week — as I struggled with an anxious heart — these words popped up on my screen.

“When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.” Psalm 94:19

How does that happen?

God somehow placed this verse and me on her heart.

She answered the call and sent it to me at exactly the right time. And I happened to glance at my phone at that moment (which I try to avoid during my quiet time:).

God at work

Two other instances came up this week.

Dennis Swanberg, America’s Minister of Encouragement, who wrote the forward in my book Grief Unwrapped: Discovering Joy in a Season of Sorrow, called to check-in. At the end of our conversation, Dennis repeated back to me the same message I had presented throughout the book. Live your life with joy and to the fullest.

And if those two weren’t enough, I was encouraged a different day by another friend who I only see occasionally – Bonny Van. She encouraged me by listening and making me laugh.

Friend, it wasn’t until this moment (as I write this post) that I realized God has been at work in my life this week.

How many more have I missed?

How many times do we miss a message from God because we’re knee-deep in our own struggles? Our own busyness? Our own messes?

Through Sandy, Dennis and Bonny, God had a word for me each day.

Knowing He is speaking to you — even through another person — reminds me that He is the God who sees me and cares for me. He is personal and He reveals His presence to me in amazing and wonderful — and sometimes ordinary — ways.

He IS

And I’m so glad He does.

Because even in distress, I can have joy because I worship the one who IS my joy. He IS my strength. He IS my help. He IS my keeper.

My God IS my rest. He IS my shelter. He IS my hope. He IS my confidence. In all things, He IS.

I pray that as we begin each day, we will take these words — and my encouragers’ examples — to heart. And as God calls us to speak or share a verse, we would also “answer the call.”

Waiting Well

by Patricia Cameron | May 19, 2023 | Encouragement, Obedience, Trust

Fifty-four years ago this week, my dad suffered a debilitating accident that changed his life. I can only imagine what it must have been like for my mom during those touch-and-go days in the hospital. Well, some of that experience I know firsthand.

Then she endured six months of waiting as he recovered and learned a new way of mobility. Sometimes the waiting alone leaves us paralyzed and unable to function properly. But that waiting period can also serve to teach and guide us.

A plan to wait

God promised the shepherd David he would be Israel’s next king. God had a plan. But that plan required David to wait.

As a fugitive, David and his “band of brothers” camped out in a cave while King Saul and his army searched for them to kill him.

And one day Saul showed up in the very same cave David and his crew waited. They encouraged David to take Saul’s life, but he wouldn’t do it. He knew God’s plan for him to be king, however, he waited. And he trusted.

In Psalm 31:24, David pens these words.

“Be strong, and let your hearts take courage, all you who wait for the LORD!” (ESV)

I have been in a season of waiting. I have cried out to God to deliver me. And I waited, knowing that His plan is for my good but crying out all the same for answers.

The words from Psalm 27:14 grip my heart.

Wait for the LORD; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!

Are you in a season of waiting or just coming out of one? Or has God used your waiting to prepare you for what’s to come?

Let the words of this Psalm and others like it keep you and encourage you in your waiting.

The power to wait

What happened during David’s season of waiting? While he waited, he wrote psalms that still impact us and speak to us today. While he waited, God used that time to teach, minister and prepare him to lead Israel one day. While he didn’t know it then, God would eventually use the outpouring of his heart — and words spoken in agony — to help and heal people throughout history.

David waited well. We can, too, because of the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. He knows I struggle with this. And you may too. However, He knows and provides the power we need to wait. And we can trust God while we’re waiting on Him to act.

Warrior Women

by Patricia Cameron | May 5, 2023 | Courage, Obedience, Prayer

As I prepared to move without a house to move to, I told my friend Elizabeth that it had taken an army of warriors praying on my behalf to get me through this season of uncertainty.

And that is what God has done. Some old friends. Some new. Some young. Some old. All have taken the time to lift me up to the Father. I thank God for warrior women who will take a moment out of their day to call, text, pray specifically for my decisions and that God would meet my needs.

And I know He will. I know the promises of the scriptures – God’s words spoken to all humankind who will listen and obey.

In the waiting

Ah, but the waiting, the anxiety and putting it into action is the hardest part.

I read a chapter from Mark Batterson’s book Chase the Lion that spoke to my heart. Are my dreams big enough? Do I have the kind of faith to dream and step out in faith? Or to wait in faith?

Am I strong enough to live and laugh on the gray days – these dark and unsettling days of waiting? My wilderness.

God sees our hearts

As God encouraged Joshua when He commissioned him to lead the Israelites after Moses died, He is with me — with us. He helps us to be strong and courageous because He is with us.

We don’t walk alone. God already knew His people would rebel and turn away, but He still said he would not abandon them.

As my warrior friend reminded me, God sees our hearts. He still loves us no matter what. That is as true today as it was when Israel stepped across the Jordan into the promised land.

God meets our needs

I learned something new last week about God’s provision. Or at least I’d never thought about it.

God’s manna followed the Israelites into the promised land then stopped the day after they had access to the local food. Six days a week for 40 years, God provided manna for them. It arrived like clockwork, then ended the day it wasn’t needed any longer. Talk about God’s provision.

Do you need God’s provision today? Or do you need a warrior to pray on your behalf?

God is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. He is the breath of life. He is our timeless redeemer. He is forever faithful. He is the prince of peace, the Lamb of God, the Lion of Judah. He is Jesus Christ our Lord.

And He is completely capable of providing for our needs.

Change the Way You Think

by Patricia Cameron | Apr 25, 2023 | Encouragement, God, Miracles

I saw myself in scripture today.

I read the story of Gideon in Judges 6 and 7. I didn’t see myself in the way you might think — the prophet Gideon leading people to conquer the Midianites. (The Midianites had oppressed Israel to the point they were hiding out in caves in the mountains.)

I didn’t see myself in the way Gideon asked God for a sign (remember the fleece story in Judges 6:36-40). I’ve certainly done my share of that, though.

I saw a man given to fear—a man who acted faithlessly. I saw a man full of questions, and one who doubted God.

Look for God in your story

But then I saw God in this story. God knew Gideon, knew his shortcomings, and knew his fears and doubts. God didn’t reprimand or lecture Gideon. Instead, He acted patiently. He walked beside Gideon and encouraged him.

God knew what Gideon needed the most was a glimpse of who He was.

And Gideon saw God defeat 120,000 Midianites with 300 Israelite soldiers whose weapons were only trumpets and jars with torches inside.

My friend, God knows what we need most too. We need a glimpse of who He is. Because of that, we can know He is with us too.

And with faith in Jesus Christ and the knowledge He is with us, we too can fight our battles with confidence.

W. Tozer said “We can’t think rightly of God until we begin to think of Him as always being there — and being there first! (Mornings with Tozer April 25)

See who God is

Do you need a glimpse of who God is? I know I do.

I pray that that is exactly what we will find as we worship and acknowledge who God is. The God who meets us where we are – even in our questions. The God who is patient with us — even in our doubts and fears. And the God who walks beside us and encourages us — even when we lack strength and confidence.

Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. (Romans 12:2 NLT)